EP366 - IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE: TWO PARALLEL GLOBAL THREATS (ID 1011)
Abstract
Backgrounds:
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) isa major global threat and was already spreading rapidly before the emergence of COVID-19. The impact of the pandemic on AMR may be more pronounced in low and middle-income countries where antibiotic consumption is already high. This study aims to assess changes on AMR during the COVID-19 pandemic at hospital level, as documented by the WHONET-Greece AMR surveillance network.
Methods
A retrospective nationwide prevalence multicenter study was conducted in all paediatric departments, representing the 7 Regional Health Directorates of Greece. Routine susceptibility data of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacterial isolates from blood and respiratory specimens were used in order to identify potential differences in AMR trends during the two study periods: January 2019–February 2020 and March 2020–December 2021.The analysis was stratified by organism, antimicrobial, ward and specimen type.
Results:
Significant differences in the slope of non-susceptibility trends were identified in Acinetobacter baumannii blood isolates to ciprofloxacin (42.8%vs100%, p=0.006) and colistin (0%vs62.5%, p=0.003); ESBL Klebsiella pneumoniae blood (9.2%vs36.5%, p<0.001) and respiratory isolates (5.1%vs28.2%, p=0.012); and Pseudomonas aeruginosa respiratory isolates to ciprofloxacin (16.6%vs39.6%, p=0.005) and aztreonam (33.8%vs57.7%, p=0.05). Non-susceptibility trends of Staphylococcus aureus isolates to oxacillin and Enterococcus faecium isolates to glycopeptides remained largely unchanged. Similarly, non-susceptibility trends in ICUs remained stable during the study period.
Conclusions/Learning Points:
Preliminary results on AMR trends during the COVID-19 pandemic in Greek paediatric wards indicate an increase in key gram-negative bacteria but not on gram positive. Further analysis on antibiotic prescribing during the same period will prove a possible causative relationship between antibiotic use during the pandemic and AMR.
